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Lit Hub Weekly

June 29 - July 3, 2026

TODAY: In 1804, Nathaniel Hawthorne is born on the 4th of July.

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Get ready for part two! These are the 258 books we’re most anticipating in the second half of 2026. | Lit Hub Reading Lists

Did you know that Ancient Roman romance novels went hard? | Lit Hub History

Why readers still fall in love with Mr. Darcy, even after 200 years. | Lit Hub Criticism

Why one of the best American backpacking books was written by a Japanese Buddhist Beat poet. | Lit Hub Craft

Everyone’s pretty excited: In defense of sports clichés. | The Paris Review

“It seems obvious to me that it’s not appealing to have to apply 40 different things every night. Why would that be good?” Caroline Reilly and Megan Nolan discuss the aesthetic legacy of Patrick Bateman. | Dirt

Diana Bellonby considers the queerness of Vernon Lee’s ghost stories. | Los Angeles Review of Books

“This is a world of girls and boys. Its fundamental charm lies in its playground quality, in its capacity to speak not to our practical adult hopes but to our simple wish to belong.” Lillian Fishman on Love Island. | The New Yorker

“I’m more of a writer who draws than an artist who writes.” John Kelly interviewslegendary cartoonist Kim Deitch. | The Comics Journal

Inside William Kentridge’s studio, “a safe space for stupidity.” | Hyperallergic

LIT HUB PRESENTS: THE BEST OF THE BEST BOOKS READING CHALLENGE!

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Marco Bresciani remembers Carlo Ginzburg